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With National Margarita Day last week and National Tortilla Day this Wednesday, I thought it would be nothing less than appropriate to celebrate the day in between: Taco Tuesday!!!!

That’s right: Tacos! Who doesn’t love tacos!?! I know what all of you are probably thinking,…”This is a fashion blog; Why are we talking about food?” or “Quit, you’re making me hungry!”but the truth is, every girl has those splurge days when all they want to do is snack on some of their favorite foods! I figured that I mine as well share what some of the Garish Gal girls love to eat the most, and the top two items on the list: Tacos and Donuts! (not together, of course… also, donut blog to potentially come in the future)

Tacos and clothes are somewhat alike if you think about it in a really weird way. Some outfits are similar to another, yet none are the same. Tacos bring many flavors to the table, as do each item of clothing we put on. Some are colorful, bold, tasteful, spicy, or bland. Garish Gal isn’t about the “bland tacos”, Garish means to be lurid, so just like clothes, tacos should also be original, unique, and stand out. Which is why posted below are some of Garish Gal’s newest arrivals that will satisfy your hunger in the fashion world, along with three amazingly unique but easy taco recipes to match your spicy outfits.

As Valentine’s Day approaches, I am accepting the fact that I am single yet once again. The only valentines I need are some cute clothes, fun friends, and credit cards to go buy more cute clothes with my fun friends. As every girls number one motto should be, I live by the words “Clothes Over Bros”, which is why I’ve made a list of the top 5 things you should do with your girlfriends this weekend while rocking some amazing Garish Gal looks. Its better than cliche roses, its “Gal”entine’s Day!!!!

1.) Galentine’s Weekend

Since Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday this year, take a weekend getaway with your girls to escape from all of our hectic lives!! Ideas can range anywhere from a fun weekend in a big city, going skiing (I would break myself), or gambling your fortunes away at a casino! Anything to take a break from reality and enjoy yourself with friends.

2.) No Date, No Problem

If you can’t afford to skip out on a whole weekend in reality (bummer), make a date night with your girlfriends. Throw on a stunning dress like one of the ones below, go out with your girls, and make the guys out and about, wish they were on a date with you;)

shopgarishgal.com

3.) “Build-A…Cuddle Buddy?”

Yes, I know it sounds crazy, but I am SO OBSESSED with Build-A-Bear!!! Some of the best advice heard all the time is “Never Grow Up” so, why not take a fun day with a BFF or two and build your very own valentine!! Laughs with your girls, and a buddy to cuddle up with when the night ends!

4.) “Boxed Wine and The Bachelor”

Not everyone wants to go out on Valentine’s Day, so invite the gals over, go buy a box of wine, and fall in love with this years Indiana Bachelor: Ben Higgins!!! Love Him, who else do you want to dream over on valentines day with some wine!!

5.) “Celebrate with the #1 Girl in your life: Yourself!!”

Though you now have some ideas on how to celebrate Galentine’s Day, a nice bubble bath can be just as satisfying as all of the above options! Do whatever brings YOU happiness, because the day is meant for love…So Love Yourself<3

And to all the other girls who do have dates with their significant others, kill the night in a Garish Gal look or anything that makes you feel like you are Beyoncè!!!

The Garish Gal story is one I’ve have told on this blog multiple times! One that is so near and dear to my heart that sometimes I want to shy away from sharing. However, my local newspaper The Kokomo Tribune reached out for an interview and beautifully told the background story of the name Garish Gal. Check out the article below for a full view of the story as well as some pictures of the new Garish Gal Fashion Trailer.

Today for Service Saturday, Garish Gal is teaming up with Project 117 to bring Christmas to their students & staff! Their Christmas boxes are $15 for a single box and they are still in need of 30+ boxes!

Today only- when you spend $60 at Garish Gal (online or in the mobile boutique) Garish Gal will donate a Christmas Box to Project 117!! So make a difference today by grabbing your girlfriends and Shopping Garish Gal to give Christmas to the amazing children at Project 117 that are truly deserving of a great Christmas!!

Feeling the pull to do more for these kids? Find out how to sponsor a classroom at Project 117 here!

Indiana University Kokomo Collegiate Management students selected Garish Gal for their Business Analysis project. It was fun to sit down with the students and talk about the Garish Gal business. The point of the project was to perform a SWOT Analysis (if you weren’t a business student and this concept wasn’t drilled into your head- SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, & Threats a business may face) of the business and make recommendations!

I had expressed to the group that one day I would like to open a brick & mortar store either in Kokomo or Carmel. They did a thorough analysis of both locations and cities to see which they would suggest as my best option. Then they presented their findings and recommendations to their class as well as some additional local business owners. It was great to see their perspective and hear what they had to say.

They handed me a copy of the presentation and as I read through it I noticed something that really struck me. “Young, sophisticated, and fashionable, these three words can mean different things to different people, but to Maggie Talbert these three words describe her life. The biggest strength of Garish Gal is Maggie herself.”

Instantly after reading those words, I welled up with tears (yes, I know I’m always doing that). When you are running a business by yourself, working seemingly endless hours, and stressing out about certain aspects of business you forget that you are good at your job. You forget that you do what you do because people believe in your abilities. Those two simple sentences from people that met with me for a few hours pointed out something I had become blind to.

I am so glad Garish Gal was able to be apart of this project and I am grateful for the group members who reminded me that I am able and strong enough to run this business! Thanks Aaron Benner, Rachele McQuern, Dale Janssen, Walter Spitznagle, & Jennifer Louthen for giving me some much needed confidence and for doing such a great job presenting Garish Gal to fellow IUK students!

I wanted to share some of my family photos that were take by local Indiana Photographer Halee Betzner! She is insanely talented!

My sister, mom, and I wore Garish Gal clothing for the pictures-kind of by force, kind of not! I loved that each of us could find something that we felt comfortable & looked good in! That is what my aim is for Garish Gal-any age, any style, & any body type can find something they love!

I hope you enjoy our family pictures and I want to wish you a Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Merry Christmas ❤

I am so looking forward to my favorite time of year with my favorite people! #familyfirst

I get asked a lot about how to properly care for the goods purchased from Garish Gal. Personally, I am very specific about how I care for the clothing I buy. When I am paying a little more for better quality, I also understand that these items may require special care.

First, I always check to see what the washing instruction. If is a dry clean only item, then I know that is a piece I will never risk washing (be honest some of you do it anyways!). If it is a “hand wash” item, I always wash it on the delicate cycle without detergent and then lay flat or hang dry. Don’t hang dry items that will “grow” on the hanger! Items like this include sweaters, viscose t-shirts, or other softer materials.

Pay attention to the materials you are working with! Spot clean only with suedes and pleathers! Never wash pleather/leathers it will break down the material and completely ruin it.

Second, when it comes to hanging items pay attention to the fabric. I almost never hang sweaters. Sweaters in nature tend to “grow” on the hanger. By grow I mean that they expand and become longer. I always fold my sweaters in order to prevent growing. I am also cautious about hanging items that are made of viscose (most soft t-shirts are made of viscose) because these items tend to dog ear at the shoulders from the hanger. I recommend making sure the item is completely dry before hanging. If the material is really soft, then I do not hang the shirt.

Third, I almost never dry any of my clothes. I have worked on the wholesale side of the clothing industry. I used to have to work with the design team and create a care and content sheet for our major accounts. Care and content sheets tell you what the items are made of and how to care for the items to have the best possible longevity. Most of these materials really aren’t meant to withstand the heat of a dryer over and over again. If the item has elastic, the heat of the dryer breaks down the elasticity over time (this is especially true with your underwear-just a little heads up!). I have found that the best way to make my clothes really last is to air dry everything! I know this sounds annoying, but it really doesn’t take very long and you get more bang for your buck!

I hope that this helps you when you are buying new items and washing for the first time! Think about how long you want the item to last and look it’s best!

With the trailer finally in my possession, My grandpa and I immediately started working hard on turning it into a fully functioning mobile boutique. Of course like any remolding or renovation process, it took much longer than expected, cost more money, and had minor stress inducing problems arise. However, I am happy to announce the trailer is officially completed on the inside! The outside vinyl wrap will take about 3 more weeks to have fully completed, but trust me it will totally be worth the wait!

Now that the trailer is finally finished on the inside, I have been able to breathe a sigh of relief. There were moments I doubted the design and colors, how it was coming together, and I reached a point where I hated everything. However, once I finally filled the trailer with the clothes my doubts were put to rest. I just sat on the floor taking it all in and crying. Lots of hard work, long hours, and stress finally started to prove to not be futile! I am SO proud and excited about how it has turned out. I think you all will love it too!
Below is the transformation! Check it out and see how amazing it is!

You have to shop the boutique to check out what it looks like fully loaded!!

Black Friday the Fashion trailer will officially be out and about in the Weber Speakers Parking lot (405 E Southway Blvd Kokomo, IN 46902) from 1-5pm! Come Shop!

As the holidays approach, we see more and more companies that are offering ways to help out different organizations. A lot of readers are just learning about Garish Gal for the first time and aren’t aware of the premise of why I started GG.

I started Garish Gal because I had always dreamed of starting a clothing boutique, but after a trip to Haiti I realized I wanted GG to be more than just a place to shop. I wanted to be able to help out the kids that I had met in Haiti with Garish Gal. These kids had SO little, but their lives were so full of happiness. I haven’t seen smiles so bright and so wide since my last trip. My friend Curtis had started a school in Haiti known as Project 117 which provides hope through education for the children in the local village and orphanage. They were elated to be able to go to school.

With Garish Gal I originally decided to donate $25 of every $150 customer purchase to Project 117. However, I wanted an easier and more common way to donate to P117. So effective January 1,2016 Garish Gal will donate 10% of profits to P117!

Garish Gal donates to a life changing organization regularly-not just at a certain time of year. I want you to know that your purchase ALWAYS helps make life changes without having you donate extra, just simply purchase a top that you love or necklace you’ve been lusting after! It is that simple.

Below is one of the little girls I fell in love with on my trip. Her name is Swenslie. Her story is SO tragic and unfair. Her little eyes showed the hurt, fear, and uncertainty she had experienced in her past. After arriving at the orphanage she was enrolled in school at Project 117. Now, she is thriving better than ever! Her eyes match the wide beautiful smile that is constantly spread across her face. When you shop with Garish Gal, you help fun P117 activities that make this little girl’s life better!

AHHHH!! The enclosed cargo trailer that will be the newest home of Garish Gal on the go is finally in! I couldn’t be happier with how the trailer turned out. We had the manufacturer add in a wall and make a few other adjustments, so I was thrilled to finally see the end result. My grandpa also had donuts (which is one of my favorite foods ever)!!! Check out the pictures below to see the “shell” of Garish Gal on the go!

We started to put in the flooring in and it was a littttttttle bit harder than we thought it was going to be. My grandpa (pictured) would measure and cut the pieces to fit and I was in charge of locking the pieces in and using a mallet to secure the flooring. We started to really get into a grove, but our hunger got the best of us!

I literally LOVE donuts…so my two favorite things obviously had to be experienced together!

I surprised myself by excelling at putting the floor in! I actually started to really like it! It did require some breaks though!

This is the inside of the trailer which will house the fitting room and clothing racks!

This is the back of the trailer which will be the entrance!

The whole trailer!! It was bigger than I remembered! I’m going to need prayers just to drive this bad boy!

This is the inside back of the trailer where the entrance will be!

Here is the beginning of the floor installation! I love that this project has become a great bonding experience with my grandpa that I will have forever! He is helping make my vision come alive with his woodworking skills and I couldn’t be happier!